Frank Darabont: Difference between revisions

{{Hungarian name|Darabont Ferenc Árpád}}

{{Infobox person

| image = Frank Darabont at the PaleyFest 2011 - The Walking Dead panel.jpg

| education = [[Hollywood High School]]

| othername = Frank A. Darabont<br />Ardeth Bey

| yearsactive = 1981–present

| spouse = Sara Rae Darabont<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/shawshank-redemption-turns-25-frank-darabont-films-legacy-1236843/|title = 'The Shawshank Redemption' Turns 25: Frank Darabont Reflects on the Journey from Box Office Bomb to Oscar Nominee|website = [[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date = September 18, 2019}}</ref>

}}

 

 

 

== Early life ==

 

Darabont was inspired in his youth to pursue a career in film after seeing the [[George Lucas]] film ''[[THX 1138]]''.<ref name="austin">{{cite web|url=http://www.onstory.tv/player/2.php?xrlink=A_CONVERSATION_WITH_FRANK_DARABONT.mp3%20&xilink=|title=A Conversation With Frank Darabont|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017000315/http://www.onstory.tv/player/2.php?xrlink=A_CONVERSATION_WITH_FRANK_DARABONT.mp3%20&xilink=|archive-date=October 17, 2015}}</ref> Darabont graduated from [[Hollywood High School]] in 1977 and did not attend college.<ref name="1997interview">[http://ubuntuone.com/7fRrJpVvEyjyTmcTdTmSfT Frank Darabont Interview] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140405201823/http://ubuntuone.com/7fRrJpVvEyjyTmcTdTmSfT |date=April 5, 2014}}</ref>

 

=== Early works ===

 

Darabont sold his first screenplay titled ''Black Cat Run'' in 1986, but it was not produced for more than a decade, as a television film under the same name.<ref name="1997interview" /> Darabont was approached by [[Chuck Russell]] (who was a producer on ''Hell Night'' and ''The Seduction'') with an offer to become his writing partner, as he had become interested in Darabont's writing after reading his [[spec script]] written for the television series ''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]''.<ref name="austin" />

The two began working on a script for a remake of the film ''[[The Blob]]'', which they had planned to shop around to studios. That was interrupted when they were both hired to rewrite the script of ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors]]'', with Russell directing the film. The two were given only two weeks to rewrite the script and accomplished it in ten days. The success of their ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'' film allowed them to produce the first script they had originally written, ''[[The Blob (1988 film)|The Blob]]''.<ref name="austin" /> By then considered a successful writer for hire, Darabont was commissioned to write ''[[The Fly II]]'', an early draft of ''[[The Rocketeer (film)|The Rocketeer]]'', and an unproduced sequel to ''[[Commando (1985 film)|Commando]]''.<ref>[http://www.commandofans.com/commando2script.pdf Action Alliance Message Board – Home<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071203030829/http://www.commandofans.com/commando2script.pdf |date=December 3, 2007}}</ref>

 

 

=== ''The Shawshank Redemption'' (1994) ===

{{Main|The Shawshank Redemption}}

 

 

=== ''The Green Mile'' (1999) ===

=== ''The Majestic'' (2001) ===

{{Main|The Majestic (film)}}

 

=== ''The Mist'' (2007) ===

=== ''Mob City'' (2013) ===

{{Main|Mob City}}

 

 

=== Other work ===

Darabont also held the rights to two other Stephen King stories, ''[[The Long Walk]]'' and ''[[The Monkey]]'', neither of which he ever adapted.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.deadline.com/2007/04/why-frank-darabont-told-george-lucas-youre-insane-over-indiana-jones-4/|title=Why Frank Darabont Told George Lucas 'You're Insane' Over 'Indiana Jones 4′|publisher=Deadline|date=April 18, 2007}}</ref>

 

 

Over the years Darabont has reunited with his old writing partner [[Chuck Russell]]. He did a rewrite for Russell's film ''[[Eraser (film)|Eraser]]'', they attempted to adapt a film of the 1930s pulp character, [[Doc Savage]], and the two wrote an early treatment and were executive producers on the film ''[[Collateral (film)|Collateral]]''.<ref name="1997interview" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=Doc Savage |url=http://www.mania.com/30936.html |work=Mania.com Development Hell |access-date=May 22, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927021758/http://www.mania.com/30936.html |archive-date=September 27, 2007 }}</ref>

In 2013, he lent his voice to a lengthier version of the ''[[World War Z]]'' audio book. In November of the same year [[Bob Weinstein]] revealed that he and Darabont were developing a ten part television series based on Darabont's 2007 film ''The Mist''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/25/business/media/the-weinstein-company-seeking-hits-shift-to-tv.html|title=The Weinstein Company, Seeking Hits, Shifts to TV|last=Cieply|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Cieply|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 24, 2013|access-date=November 30, 2013}}</ref>

 

 

In June 2014, it was reported that Darabont was on the shortlist to direct ''[[The Huntsman: Winter's War]]'', a sequel to the [[fantasy film]] ''[[Snow White and the Huntsman]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2014/06/huntsman-2-helmer-short-list-frank-darabont-gavin-oconnor-andy-muschietti/|title='Huntsman 2′ Helmer Short List: Frank Darabont, Gavin O'Connor, Andy Muschietti|last=Fleming|first=Mike Jr.|work=Deadline|date=June 4, 2014|access-date=June 4, 2014}}</ref> A month later it was confirmed that Darabont would direct the film, but it would not be a sequel, but a prequel focusing on [[Chris Hemsworth]]'s character Eric, the Huntsman.<ref>{{cite news|title=Universal's Snow White Prequel 'Huntsman' Targets April 2016 Release|url=https://www.deadline.com/2014/07/huntsman-movie-snow-white-sequel-release-date-april-22-2016/ |publisher=deadline.com |date=July 31, 2014 |access-date=August 1, 2014 |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140805225453/http://www.deadline.com/2014/07/huntsman-movie-snow-white-sequel-release-date-april-22-2016/|archive-date=August 5, 2014}}</ref> However, Darabont left the project in January 2015, citing creative differences as the cause.<ref>{{cite news|title=Frank Darabont Exits 'The Huntsman'; Emily Blunt Still Circling|url=https://deadline.com/2015/01/frank-darabont-the-huntsman-universal-chris-hemsworth-charlize-theron-1201352206/ |publisher=deadline.com |date=January 17, 2015 |access-date=January 17, 2015}}</ref>

In addition to collaborating with actors on films and television projects, Darabont has collaborated with writers, producers, composers, and others. These include [[Chuck Russell]], [[Mark Isham]], [[Stephen King]], [[Gregory Nicotero]], [[Rohn Schmidt]], [[David Tattersall]], and others. [[Jeffrey DeMunn]] appeared in ''[[The Blob (1988 film)|The Blob]]'' and ''Black Cat Run'', both of which Darabont wrote, [[Alexa Davalos]] appeared in the pilot episode of ''[[Raines]]'' that he directed and [[Amin Joseph]] first worked with Darabont on an episode of ''[[The Shield]]'' titled "Chasing Ghosts".

 

 

! Actor

<!--01--> ! ''[[The Shawshank Redemption]]''<br />(1994)

<!--06--> | {{yes}}

|-

<!--01--> | {{yes}}

<!--02--> | {{yes}}

<!--06--> |

|-

<!--02--> |

<!--03--> |

|-

| 1983

| {{yes}}

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

| {{yes}}

|

|-

|}

 

{| class="wikitable"

|-

| 2004

| ''[[Collateral (film)|Collateral]]''

|-

| 2009

|-

| 2016

|

|}

 

{| class="wikitable"

|-

|}

 

{| class="wikitable"

|-

! Title

! Role

|-

| 1998

| ''[[Vampires (1998 film)|Vampires]]''

| The Man with Buick

|-

| 2005

| ''[[King Kong (2005 film)|King Kong]]''

| Gunner #3

|}

 

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|-

|-

| 1990–1992

| {{no}}

| {{no}}

|-

| 1992–1996

| {{no}}

| {{no}}

|-

| rowspan="2"|2007

| {{yes}}

| {{yes}}

|-

| 2013

| {{yes}}

| {{yes}}

| {{yes}}

|}

 

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

!Year

|-

| 1997

|Ghosts

| style="text-align:left" | TV Miniseries

| style="text-align:left" |''[[Entourage (U.S. TV series)|Entourage]]''

|Himself

|}

 

| 1990–1992

| ''[[Tales from the Crypt (TV series)|Tales from the Crypt]]''

|-

| rowspan="2"|1994

{{Frank Darabont}}

{{Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay}}

{{Authority control}}

 

[[Category:Writers from Los Angeles]]

[[Category:People from Montbéliard]]

[[Category:American television directors]]

[[Category:American television writers]]

[[Category:Writers from Chicago]]

[[Category:American male television writers]]

[[Category:Writers from Bourgogne-Franche-Comté]]

[[Category:Film directors from Los Angeles]]